Firefighters on Thursday, May 24, rescued a 26-year-old Riverside woman whose car plunged 700 feet off Highway 18 near Crestline after she intentionally drove off the mountain road, authorities said.

San Bernardino County firefighters rescue a woman whose car plunged over the side of Highway 18 near Crestline on May 24, 2018. (Courtesy of San Bernardino County Fire Department)

The crash happened about 5:45 p.m., California Highway Patrol Officer Juan Quintero said. The woman, whose name was not disclosed, was driving south on Highway 18 between the Crestline cutoff at Highway 138 and Lake Gregory Drive when she intentionally made a left turn off the road, Quintero said.

The woman was injured but was able to phone 911. She didn’t know exactly where she was, San Bernardino County Fire Department Battalion Chief Bob Evans said, but dispatchers were able to determine a general area by “pinging” her phone, or sending a signal to it.

A fire captain noticed dirt disturbed on a concrete berm, and firefighters examining the area spotted the car far down the mountain.

“A needle-in-the-haystack find for us,” Evans said.

The fading light and foggy conditions ruled out using a helicopter to hoist the woman.

“It was kind of a race against time,” Evans said.

So firefighters pulled out ropes — the longest of which was 500 feet, about 200 feet too short — and tied them together to lower rescuers to the car. They brought the woman up in a basket. In all, Evans said, the rescue took a little less than 2 hours.

About three dozen people took part in the rescue, including a hand crew.

“I’m proud of them,” Evans said.

The woman was taken to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton.

Sign up for our breaking news email newsletter: When major local news happens, you will be the first to know. Subscribe here.

Brian Rokos writes about public safety issues such as policing, criminal justice, scams, how law affects public safety, firefighting tactics and wildland fire danger. He has also covered the cities of San Bernardino, Corona, Norco, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Canyon Lake and Hemet. Before that he supervised reporters and worked as a copy editor. For some reason, he enjoys movies where the Earth is threatened with extinction.